Armed Forces: General Election 2015

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what effort is being made to ensure that all armed service members are able to exercise their right to vote at the coming general election.

Lord Astor of Hever: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes a number of steps to ensure that those entitled to vote in the forthcoming general election are able to do so. These are detailed below.
	We will shortly publish our annual instruction, which sets out the arrangements for electoral registration which will enable Service personnel and their spouses or civil partners to vote. This instruction will also set out the various options available to service personnel for casting their vote - in person, by post and by proxy - and guidance about how to register online.
	The MOD will launch its annual information campaign to encourage Service personnel and their families to register to vote in conjunction with the Electoral Commission on 5 February 2015. All units have been tasked with holding a registration day on a convenient date during February or March of which information on electoral registration will be provided and personnel will have the opportunity to ask questions.
	Together with the Electoral Commission, the MOD has engaged with a wide range of organisations, publications, websites and forums, including all three service families’ federations and the HIVE network, to ensure that information about how to register reaches as many members of the service community as possible.
	In the run up to the general election the British Forces Post Office will look to identify, extract and prioritise postal ballot papers on their way to and from locations overseas.

Asylum: Syria

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to encourage local authorities to sign up to the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme.
	To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what criteria they based their estimate that the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme would support several hundred refugees over three years.
	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to review the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme in the light of the call by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for 100,000 further humanitarian admission places in 2015 and 2016.

Lord Bates: When we launched the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation (VPR) scheme from January 2014, we wrote to local authorities to invite them to participate. As the scheme has progressed, we have continued to engage closely with local authorities who have expressed an interest in participation. Following the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) pledging conference in Geneva on 9 December 2014, a number of additional local authorities have also expressed an interest, and we are in discussions with them. We are grateful to the local authorities who are supporting the scheme, and we remain confident that we can continue to meet the needs of arrivals in the UK under the scheme as planned. We expect the scheme to help several hundred Syrians over three years, and we welcome further offers of support from local authorities as the scheme progresses.
	With millions of Syrians displaced by the conflict, the Government strongly believes that the UK can have the greatest impact and help the most people in need through humanitarian aid in the region and actively seeking an end to the crisis. We have committed £700 million in response to the humanitarian crisis, making the UK the second largest bilateral donor after the USA, and this funding is helping to support hundred of thousands of people. Compared with aid, resettlement can only ever help a minority of those in need. However, we recognise that some very vulnerable people cannot be supported effectively in the region, and we launched the VPR scheme to complement our aid by offering protection in the UK to particularly vulnerable individuals and their families, prioritising women and children at risk, those in need of medical care and survivors of violence and torture. Potential beneficiaries of the scheme are identified and referred to us by UNHCR on this basis. The VPR scheme is therefore based on need rather than fulfilling a quota. However, it was necessary for planning purposes to estimate the scale of potential arrivals under the scheme, bearing in mind the purpose of the scheme, UNHCR’s capacity and the need to have suitable care and support in place for these very vulnerable individuals as soon as they arrive in the UK.
	We believe that substantial aid, actively seeking an end to the crisis and providing protection for some of the most vulnerable people are the most effective ways for the UK to help those displaced by the crisis and their host countries, rather than larger scale resettlement. We therefore have no current plans to expand the VPR scheme, and we made our position clear at the UNHCR pledging conference on 9 December. However, we continue to monitor the situation in Syria and the surrounding region and work closely with UNHCR to identify the most vulnerable people displaced by the conflict to ensure that the scheme remains appropriate.

Asylum: Syria

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking regularly to review the number of people offered resettlement places in the United Kingdom under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme to ensure that the scheme is responsive to need.

Lord Bates: When we launched the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation (VPR) scheme from January 2014, we wrote to local authorities to invite them to participate. As the scheme has progressed, we have continued to engage closely with local authorities who have expressed an interest in participation. Following the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) pledging conference in Geneva on 9 December 2014, a number of additional local authorities have also expressed an interest, and we are in discussions with them. We are grateful to the local authorities who are supporting the scheme, and we remain confident that we can continue to meet the needs of arrivals in the UK under the scheme as planned. We expect the scheme to help several hundred Syrians over three years, and we welcome further offers of support from local authorities as the scheme progresses.
	With millions of Syrians displaced by the conflict, the Government strongly believes that the UK can have the greatest impact and help the most people in need through humanitarian aid in the region and actively seeking an end to the crisis. We have committed £700 million in response to the humanitarian crisis, making the UK the second largest bilateral donor after the USA, and this funding is helping to support hundred of thousands of people. Compared with aid, resettlement can only ever help a minority of those in need. However, we recognise that some very vulnerable people cannot be supported effectively in the region, and we launched the VPR scheme to complement our aid by offering protection in the UK to particularly vulnerable individuals and their families, prioritising women and children at risk, those in need of medical care and survivors of violence and torture. Potential beneficiaries of the scheme are identified and referred to us by UNHCR on this basis. The VPR scheme is therefore based on need rather than fulfilling a quota. However, it was necessary for planning purposes to estimate the scale of potential arrivals under the scheme, bearing in mind the purpose of the scheme, UNHCR’s capacity and the need to have suitable care and support in place for these very vulnerable individuals as soon as they arrive in the UK.
	We believe that substantial aid, actively seeking an end to the crisis and providing protection for some of the most vulnerable people are the most effective ways for the UK to help those displaced by the crisis and their host countries, rather than larger scale resettlement. We therefore have no current plans to expand the VPR scheme, and we made our position clear at the UNHCR pledging conference on 9 December. However, we continue to monitor the situation in Syria and the surrounding region and work closely with UNHCR to identify the most vulnerable people displaced by the conflict to ensure that the scheme remains appropriate.

Counter-terrorism

Lord Sharkey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the counter-terrorism work carried out as part of the Prevent strategy and the Channel process.

Lord Bates: The Home Office continues to monitor and evaluate the Channel programme and locally delivered Prevent projects in order to ensure that they are as effective as they can be and that good practice is shared across the country. In the Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill, we are proposing a new statutory duty on specified authorities (including local authorities, universities, Further Education providers, schools, parts of the NHS, prisons, young offender institutions, probation providers and the police) to have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism. We are also putting the Channel programme on a statutory footing. These measures will enshrine this good practice and secure local cooperation and delivery in all areas.

Diego Garcia

Lord Ashcroft: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Warsi on 17 June 2014 (HL126), with regard to the use of Diego Garcia for rendition flights, what is the latest situation in relation to such flights.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: I can confirm that the answer given by the former Senior Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my noble Friend, the right hon. Baroness Warsi on 17 June 2014 still stands.

Education: Standards

Lord Quirk: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the Ofsted Annual Report of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills 2013–14, with respect especially to (1) secondary schools (a) tolerating bad behaviour, (b) failing to challenge the most able, and (c) providing inadequate careers guidance, and (2) further education institutions (a) showing weakness in the teaching of English and mathematics, and (b) failing to provide useful careers advice.

Lord Nash: We welcome Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector’s report which highlights continuing improvement in schools and further education. The report shows that there are now over a million more children being taught in good and outstanding schools than in 2010. The Chief Inspector is right to highlight areas which require further improvement and these matters will form part of the regular discussion between ministers and Ofsted. As part of its role, the Commons Education Select Committee will be taking evidence from the Chief Inspector about the Annual Report at its hearing on 28 January 2015 and we will consider the evidence from that session as part of our ongoing
	discussions with the Chief Inspector. As a government we are committed to ensuring high standards in schools across the country.

Entry Clearances: Israel

Lord Warner: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 16 December 2014 (HL3641), whether they have discussed the risk factors relating to the entry into the country of foreign citizens with the government of the United States; and if so, why their assessment of the risks posed by Israeli citizens entering the United Kingdom differs from the assessment made by the government of the United States about entry into that country.

Lord Bates: The Government regularly discusses a range of immigration issues with the Government of the United States, including on migration. We do not disclose the details of such discussions.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the concept of a visa on arrival for students from outside the European Union with a confirmed place at a United Kingdom higher education institution.

Lord Bates: The purpose of the visa system is to screen applicants before they make their journey to the UK. It is an effective tool for the UK in reducing illegal immigration, tackling organised crime and protecting national security. The current system of screening applicants before they arrive also speeds up processing at the port of arrival.
	When applying for a visa, students are required to show that they have been accepted to study at an education provider in the UK. They must also demonstrate they have a sufficient level of English, funds to maintain themselves, relevant qualifications and a genuine intention to study.

HM Passport Office: Belfast

Lord Browne of Belmont: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many staff were employed in HM Passport Office in Belfast in each of the last five years.

Lord Bates: The following table shows the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff employed in the Belfast Passport Office in each of the last five years.
	
		
			  March 2010 March 2011 March 2012 March 2013 March 2014 
			 FTEs 171 163 160 182 205

Horn of Africa

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether agreements have been reached under the “Khartoum Process” launched in November 2014; if so, what is their specific subject matter; and whether they expect any significant reduction to ensue in flows of migrants and refugees from the Horn of Africa.

Lord Bates: On 28 November, the Government joined EU Member States and African partners in Rome to agree a political declaration launching the new Khartoum Process, a joint initiative aimed at tackling people smuggling and human trafficking in the Horn of Africa. The UK is part of the core group of countries steering the development of concrete initiatives under this new process, the first meeting of which is expected to take place in February. The European Commission has already identified substantial funding of around £4.5 million to support this work.
	The Khartoum Process is a key element of wider joint efforts under the EU’s Task Force Mediterranean to tackle continuing migratory pressures in the Mediterranean, prevent further loss of life at sea, provide enhanced protection in migrants’ regions of origin, and combat the heinous activities of the criminal gangs who facilitate dangerous voyages. As such, the Government expects the new process to make a contribution to tackling the flows from the Horn of Africa, although any sustainable solution will take time to achieve.

Israel

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that Israel returns the 128 million US dollars it is withholding in tax revenues which are owing to the Palestinian Authority.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Our Ambassador to Tel Aviv discussed the decision to freeze the transfer of tax revenues with the Israeli Deputy National Security Adviser and the Senior National Security Council Director Foreign Policy on 4 January. He also discussed the tax freeze with the Head of the Israeli Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories on 5 January. He urged them to reverse it.

Israel

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding compensation for the uprooting of 5,000 olive trees in agricultural lands east of Turmusayya.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We have not raised this specific issue with the Israeli authorities, however we hold the Israeli authorities responsible for enforcing the rule of law and to provide the appropriate protection to the Palestinian civilian population. We note the particular sensitivities around olive trees given their status as a national symbol and the sole source of income for many Palestinian farmers. The Palestinian economy needs a productive olive industry.

Middle East

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel concerning the death of Palestinian Cabinet Minister Ziad Abu Ein.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Our Embassy in Tel Aviv, including our Ambassador, lobbied a range of contacts including senior Israeli National Security Council officials in the Prime Minister’s Office to encourage a swift and transparent investigation into the death of Palestinian Minister Ziad Abu Ein.
	On 12 December 2014, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), issued a Press release saying he was shocked by the death of Palestinian Minister Ziad Abu Ein and calling for a swift and transparent investigation.

Middle East

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what position the United Kingdom took at the Conference of Parties to the Geneva Convention held in Geneva on 17 December 2014, and whether they made a statement following that Conference.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK is firmly committed to the promotion of compliance with International Humanitarian Law and upholding the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols. The UK did not issue a national statement following the conference on 17 December in Geneva. However, we stressed the importance of the conference taking a balanced and non- politicised approach. We also agreed an EU statement, which calls on all sides to fully and effectively respect the Fourth Geneva Convention in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Schools: Transport

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to monitor Sustainable Mode of Travel to School strategies as a statutory duty for local authorities; and when they plan to review those strategies in the near future.

Lord Nash: Local authorities (LAs) are under a duty to promote the use of sustainable modes of travel to school and are required to develop a strategy for sustainable local travel. Information about school travel and transport options available must be published on the LA’s website. LAs should carry out an audit of the sustainable transport infrastructure that supports travel to school and it is also good practice to audit individual school routes. The specifics of the audit and how often it should be reviewed are for a local authority to decide.
	On 18 July 2014, the Department for Education issued revised home to school travel guidance which advises LAs of these duties. The guidance is published online at:
	www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-to-school-travel-and-transport-guidance

Special Educational Needs

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effects of the 2014 European Union Procurement Directives on the existing system that provides educational, care and health support for children who require places in special schools.

Lord Nash: Local authorities are responsible for ensuring their own compliance with procurement rules and all other relevant legislation.
	The Department for Education recently sought legal advice on the relationship and interaction between the duties on local authorities in respect of the placement of children and young people with special educational needs in specialist educational institutions and local authority obligations to tender for services under the public procurement regime and are awaiting a response. In the light of the legal advice the Department receives, we will communicate with local authorities by the spring so they are clear on the position.

Speech and Language Disorders

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to ensure the early identification of Speech, Language and Communications Needs (SLCNs); and what measures will be put in place to ensure that the education workforce have the necessary skills to promote language development for pupils with SLCNs.

Lord Nash: Supporting children with speech, language and communications needs (SLCN) is extremely important. The Children and Families
	Act 2014 provides the statutory framework for identifying, assessing and providing for children with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities, including those with speech, language and communication needs. Guidance to early years settings, schools, colleges and local authorities on carrying out their duties under the Act is provided through the SEN and Disability Code of Practice.
	Education settings are responsible for deciding what specialist expertise they need to meet children and young people’s needs. The Department for Education is taking action to support the development of the workforce in a number of ways.
	The ‘Early Language Development Programme’ is raising awareness and providing practical training to professionals to improve early speech, language and communication development amongst children aged 0-5. The programme was commissioned and funded by the Department for Education and delivered by a consortium led by the specialist voluntary and community sector organisation I CAN. The programme also supports parents and carers with knowledge and skills to support their children’s speech, language and communication development.
	Funding is being provided to the Communication Trust which enables it to offer expert advice and support materials on SLCN for parents, young people, schools, colleges and other practitioners across education, health and care. It also enables them to disseminate the findings of the Better Communication Research Programme so as to promote the use of evidence based interventions to support children and young people with SLCN and a focus among commissioners
	on outcomes and value for money; and provide advice on specialist training and development for teachers and professionals in schools and colleges.
	The National College for Teaching and Learning is developing specialist resources for initial teacher training and new advanced level online modules on special educational needs - including resources on speech and language needs, to enhance teachers’ knowledge, understanding and skills.
	The National Scholarship Fund for teachers and support staff provides opportunities to apply for funding to undertake postgraduate qualifications and training in supporting children with SEN and disabilities, including those with speech, language and communication needs. Over 1,000 teachers and support staff have been supported through the fund since 2010.
	The National Association for Special Educational Needs, with funding from the Department for Education, has developed a new SEND gateway - an online portal offering education professionals free, easy access to high quality information, resources and training for meeting the needs of children with SEN and disabilities. [1]
	The AfA3As organisation is being funded to make the highly successful Achievement for All (AfA) approach available widely. It provides whole-school support to over 2000 schools to improve outcomes for pupils with SEN and disabilities.
	Around 11,000 new SEN co-ordinators have been funded to undertake the Master’s-level National Award for SEN co-ordination. This will help to improve support for all children and young people with SEN, including those with speech, language and communication needs.
	http://www.sendgateway.org.uk